BANANAMANA - Action/Adventure game [WIP]

I'm finally ready to share a first dev-log video for my new game called Bananamana!

Bananamana is a procedurally generated action/adventure game and I can't wait to share more details with you soon! Although I'm planning to release it first as a 2D, "flat" game, I've been keeping VR in mind as I design it. I actually released a VR game called Twobit Odyssey for the Gear VR and Oculus Go a year ago , so I'm already familar with the awesomeness and limitations of VR... and I'm also very sensitive to motion sickness, so I'll make sure that Bananamana doesn't make you (and I) sick. I've already run some tests with the Oculus Rift and, I have to admit, the game looks awesome in VR!

There is still a long way to go but I can't wait to share more details with you soon! I'll keep posting updates and news on this thread!

Thank you all for your help and support, don't hesitate to let me know what you think

I've been really busy working on Bananamana! I finally got to tackle my
water shader and I think it looks awesome! I still have a few things to
fix but it's starting to look like what I intended it to be! I've also
implemented the game's main User Interface - still needs some work
though! Finally, I've added a screenshot that shows a rough day/night
cycle - if everything goes according to plans, it may be an important
part of the gameplay! A lot more to come soon, hopefully in the shape of
a new Dev-Log video!

I
spent the holiday in my hometown in France visiting family and friends.
It is always a joy to spend Christmas there, especially with my two
young nephews who seem to share the same crazy passion for video games
as me and my brother do. Well, I usually can't stay idle for long... I
had my sketchbook with me and doodled all kind of stuff for Bananamana -
such as these cute slimes! I love brainstorming ideas on paper,
definitively keeps my creative juices flowing More to come soon!

New dev-log video for Bananamana! I've done so much work in the past few weeks! This video shows the new UI as well as the distance/melee weapons in action! Enemies now drop items when defeated! Well... they only release gold coins for now... but enemies always drop coins, don't they? So I had to start there Oh, and now you can also find chests! Finally, I've started working on each world's map and mini-maps! I've also fixed tons of minor issues and features here and there. Much more to come soon!

I've been putting this task on the back burner for a while, but it was
time to create a logo for Bananamana! Especially now that I've started
sharing more information and content about the game. I would like to
say a big thank you to everyone who helped me with the design! You all
rock! The logo went through several iterations in the past couple of
weeks - it will probably change in the future though, but it
definitively looks much better than the random-ish typeface I had
before.

I've added so many new features to Bananamana! Believe me, it was a real struggle to only select a handful of images! I will publish another devlog video by the end of the month, so keep an eye on it! So far I've implement flat-field terrains which give a nice sense of scale - Bananamana is procedurally generated though, so this is a feature that will give variation to the explorable regions. I've also worked on the void-crystals which are at the core of the gameplay - I will reveal more about these soon! Last and not least, I've started working on the dungeons! Well, you've probably started to figure out what Bananamana ultimately is about, right?... Let's see... randomly generated worlds, dungeons... I'll give you some answers in my next devlog video! I'm still using a lot of placeholder textures and models though - things will look much better as I progress with the game!

The game is shaping up to be genuinely lovely, and each iteration seems to be bringing a richer, experience. As a lover of procedurally-generated games, I'm very much looking forward to this -- and to seeing how you adapt the UI and experience for VR.

The game is shaping up to be genuinely lovely, and each iteration seems to be bringing a richer, experience. As a lover of procedurally-generated games, I'm very much looking forward to this -- and to seeing how you adapt the UI and experience for VR.

Thank you! My previous game was VR, so I sort of learned (sometimes the hard way) how to make a UI work in VR... sometimes, the best way, is to have no UI at all so it doesn't break immersion. That being said, I'm currently focusing my energy on the 'flat' version of the game, although I sometimes dive-in and plug in my Rift to see if the game still works in VR. And man, so far it does This is also what I learned with my previous game - it was exclusively VR and the market is currently way too small for me to survive... this is why I will release Bananamana as a 'flat' game first... but I keep VR in mind as I design it

New dev-log video for Bananamana! A month has passed since my last dev-log video and I have implemented a lot of new features in Bananamana such as dungeons! I also reveal in this video some of the game's mechanics - in a nutshell I want Bananamana to be a mix of action, adventure and exploration. The procedural generation will allow the game to renew itself each time you play. It may sound like a Roguelike, but I don't want the game to be as punishing... so Bananamana will be more of a Roguelite-ish experience. I still use placeholder textures here and there, and some models are still rough.... More to come soon!

I spent the last couple of weeks optimizing Bananamana's code. But I've
also implemented two new features - warp statues and towers! Warp
statues can be best described as checkpoints and you can warp to them
once activated. Towers are very different, they'll give you some
challenge and award you with various goodies and will allow you to check
out the surrounding area from a high vantage point. More to come soon!

Once again, I've been doing a LOT of work on Bananamana, my procedurally generated action/adventure game! I'll share some of my progress soon and will publish a new devlog video next week! But this week, I would like to share a picture of my new lightning bolt shader! It looks awesome in action!

I finally released a new devlog video for Bananamana!
In this video I mainly showcase the Warp Statues and the Towers.
Warp Statues act
as checkpoints and you can warp to them at anytime during the game.
As you know, Bananamana is procedurally generated and each level is made up of a four
kilometers wide over-world to explore, and a dungeon to unlock. Obviously, I don't want
players to get lost and eventually become frustrated exploring such a large
area. This is why I believe the Warp Statues are very important, although their
name will most probably change in the future.
Towers are very different and give you a high vantage point, allowing you to find
your next target. I know that many games use towers these days, but I
knew from that start that I needed to implement such feature. They are obviously
really simple right now, but they will feature more challenges as I progress with
the game.
I have also tweaked tons of elements, such as the UI, the effects and the weapon
system. Although I still have to implement several major features in the game,
I feel that I've reached a point when I can now add more content. I believe
this will allow me to balance out the gameplay further and to make sure
each region is fun and exciting to explore. I have also started testing out the bomb! A new
weapon type!
Here you go! I still use placeholder textures here and there, and some
models are still rough... More to come soon!